CryWorks, a Los Angeles and San Francisco, CA-based entertainment company focused on creating virtual and augmented reality experiences, raised a seed round of funding of undisclosed amount.
The round was led by Michael Bay’s 451 Media Group, 500 Mobile Collective, and cross-border venture fund WI Harper Group.
Co-founded in 2015 by Euan Macdonald (1), Hans Uhlig (2) and Kymber Lim (3), CryWorks creates and delivers immersive entertainment virtual and mixed reality experiences across existing and future platforms drawing upon the team’s years of experience advancing technical innovation at Lucasfilm/ILM, Disney, Pixar and Electronic Arts.
The company, which is now working on establishing strategic partnerships, scalable offerings and agile product development, has already worked on VR projects for IP owners and brands including Samsung, The Wall Street Journal and eSports ESL One.
(1) Macdonald has over 25 years’ VFX/CGI leadership experience at Lucasfilm/ILM, Pixar, Disney ImageMovers Digital and Electronic Arts. Working with technology partners like Qualcomm and Ubisoft, he has also run startups developing cross-platform mobile and social apps.
(2) Uhlig, who will serve as CTO, brings decades of expertise in technical filmmaking gained at Lucasfilm/ILM, Electronic Arts and Polygon. A technical director and trained mechanical engineer, he will oversee technology development of proprietary capture and production technology as well as its direct application on specific VR productions.
(3) Lim, a VFX producer with experience overseeing development at visual effects houses Psyop, Digital Domain and Method Studios, will serve as chief content officer. She has worked with top players in Hollywood, including talent agencies, A-list directors, production companies and studios and will contribute expertise in business development, Hollywood/Asia relations and VR production.
FinSMEs
22/06/2016